(My Sportsbook) - It's hard to blame members of the Seattle Seahawks for believing they're experiencing a bad case of deja vu.

An extensive rash of injuries was the driving force behind Seattle's 4-12 record in 2008, a precipitous fall from grace for a team that had reached the NFC Playoffs in each of the previous five seasons. It's been more of the same during the Seahawks' 1-3 start under new head coach Jim Mora Jr. this time around.

Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has sat out the last two contests after cracking a rib in Seattle's 23-10 loss at San Francisco during Week 2, while six-time All-Pro left tackle Walter Jones and standout cornerback Marcus Trufant have yet to take the field this season due to knee and back problems, respectively.

Two more prominent names were added to that list during last Sunday's 31-17 setback to the unbeaten Indianapolis Colts. Veteran defensive end Patrick Kerney, Seattle's most accomplished pass rusher, left in the second half with a groin strain and regular left guard Rob Sims was forced out with a sprained left ankle. Neither player is expected to be available when the Seahawks host Jacksonville this weekend.

Hasselbeck is slated to participate when the Seahawks return to practice on Wednesday, and there's a reasonable chance the seasoned signal-caller will be able to start against the Jaguars. That may be a risky proposition, though, since he'll be operating behind a decimated front line that likely won't have Jones, Sims or tackle Sean Locklear, out for the past two weeks with a high ankle sprain.

The battered Seahawks are already entering a critical point of the season, with a pair of conceivably winnable home tilts with Jacksonville and the slumping Arizona Cardinals on the horizon. Seattle can't allow for a repeat of 2008, when the club couldn't withstand the onslaught of injuries and lost five of its first six games to dig itself into a huge early hole.

"We're not where we want to be," Mora said. "We didn't expect to be [at 1-3]. But it is what it is. And we have to find a way to look forward and get better from this point on. That's what our sights are set on."

QUICK HITS: Running back Edgerrin James, the all-time leading rusher in Colts history, faced his ex-team for the first time on Sunday and registered 16 yards on four carries. The Seahawks mustered a mere 49 rushing yards as a team...Wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Seattle's most significant offseason acquisition, posted season-bests of eight catches and 103 yards in Sunday's loss...Quarterback Seneca Wallace threw for 257 yards and accounted for two touchdowns (1 passing, 1 rushing) in place of Hasselbeck...Brandon Frye started at left tackle on the Seahawks' depleted line and allowed three sacks.

NEXT UP: The AFC South member Jaguars will make their first-ever appearance at Qwest Field this coming Sunday and carry a two-game winning streak into the matchup, having defeated Houston and Tennessee after an 0-2 start. Jacksonville did lose to the Seahawks in Seattle back in 2001, with that game held at the University of Washington's Husky Stadium.

ST. LOUIS: While the Seahawks certainly have problems, their woes still pale in comparison to those of the St. Louis Rams, who remain 0-for-the NFC West this season.

As in zero points.

The hapless Rams suffered their second shutout loss to a division foe in four weeks after being whipped by the San Francisco 49ers by a 35-0 score this past Sunday at Candlestick Park. St. Louis opened play under rookie head coach Steve Spagnuolo with a 28-0 defeat at Seattle in Week 1.

The loss was the 14th in a row for the Rams dating back to last season, and the team has scored a meager 24 points through its first four games of this year.

St. Louis' long-standing run of misfortune was summed up in a single play in the San Francisco game. With the game still scoreless past the midway point of the second quarter, a punt by the 49ers Andy Lee inadvertently struck Rams cornerback Quincy Butler, who then kicked the ball into the end zone while trying to recover. San Francisco's Scott McKillop wound up recovering the fumble to give his club a 7-0 lead.

That was all the 49ers would need, as the St. Louis offense barely mounted a threat under the controls of backup quarterback Kyle Boller. The former Baltimore Ravens' first-round draft choice, starting in place of an injured Marc Bulger, managed just 108 yards on 13-of-24 passing and had a third- quarter interception returned for a touchdown by Niners' All-Pro linebacker Patrick Willis.

To be fair, Boller -- making his first regular-season start since December of the 2007 season -- didn't get much support from a pedestrian receiver corps that was missing top weapon Laurent Robinson (out for the season with a fracture leg) or a turnstile offensive line that surrendered five sacks.

On a brighter note, the Rams did receive solid play out of their much-maligned defense, with the unit holding San Francisco to just 228 total yards and 13 first downs while coming up with four sacks. Three of the 49ers's five touchdowns on Sunday came from either the defense or special teams.

QUICK HITS: Bulger sat out after bruising his right shoulder in the previous week's 36-17 loss to Green Bay, and it's uncertain as to whether he'll be available for this Sunday's game against Minnesota...Starting strongside linebacker David Vobora served the first of a four-game suspension for violating the NFL's policy on performance-enhancing substances in Sunday's loss...The Rams were also without two starters in the secondary against San Francisco, with both strong safety James Butler (knee sprain) and cornerback Ron Bartell (thigh) declared inactive.

NEXT UP: It doesn't get any easier for the Rams this week, with Brett Favre and the 4-0 Minnesota Vikings about to invade the Edward Jones Dome. St. Louis may be hoping for a letdown from the defending NFC North champions following Monday's emotional 30-23 victory over the rival Green Bay Packers in Favre's highly-anticipated first encounter with his former team.

SAN FRANCISCO: The 49ers have very quietly fielded one of the NFL's top defenses during the first quarter of this season, but the group made a very loud statement with Sunday's showing against the overmatched Rams.

San Francisco limited St. Louis to a paltry 177 total yards and nine first downs in recording its first shutout since a 38-0 whitewash of New Orleans on January 6, 2002. That just happened to be the last season the 49ers, who now own a 1 1/2-game lead atop the NFC West with a 3-1 record, reached the playoffs.

The defense directly accounted for two of San Francisco's five touchdowns, with end Ray McDonald putting the finishing touches on the rout with an 11- yard fumble return early in the fourth quarter.

"It was a total team win without a doubt," said quarterback Shaun Hill, who fired a pair of touchdown passes in the second half. "The defense stepped up and got points and so did our special teams. It's huge that every unit was pitching in."

While the easy win could surely be termed a team effort, some members stood out more than others. It was particularly hard not to notice the performance of Patrick Willis, as the game-changing inside linebacker racked up eight tackles, 2 1/2 sacks and had a 23-yard interception return of a Kyle Boller pass that gave the Niners a commanding 21-0 advantage in the third quarter.

Through the season's first four weeks, San Francisco stands second in the league in scoring defense (13.3 ppg), fourth in rushing defense (73.8 ypg) and sixth in total defense (284.0 ypg). Factoring in the final five games of last season, the 49ers have surrendered 16 points or fewer in seven of their past nine outings.

With rookie linebacker Scott McKillop recovering a fumbled punt return in the Rams' end zone during the second quarter, San Francisco scored a touchdown on offense, defense and special teams for the first time since a 24-12 triumph over Philadelphia on November 10, 1997.

QUICK HITS: Sunday's win was the 49ers' largest margin of victory since a 50-14 besting of Arizona on December 7, 2003...Running back Frank Gore sat out the St. Louis game with a right ankle strain suffered in San Francisco's Week 3 loss at Minnesota. Rookie Glen Coffee made his first career start in Gore's absence and contributed 75 yards on 24 carries...The 49ers are now 3-0 in divisional play in the early going, having previously defeated both Arizona and Seattle...Reserve linebacker Jeff Ulbrich left Sunday's win in the fourth quarter with a concussion.

NEXT UP: San Francisco will put a five-game home winning streak on the line when the formidable Atlanta Falcons pay a visit to Candlestick Park this Sunday. Atlanta, a playoff participant in 2008 following a surprising 11-5 season, figures to be well-rested for this upcoming clash after having a Week 4 bye.

ARIZONA: Having a bye week so early in the season may not be viewed as being beneficial for most teams, but the Arizona Cardinals are hoping the time off will help the reigning NFC champions re-capture the mojo that carried the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance this past winter.

Save for a dominating first-half surge that fueled a 14-point win over Jacksonville back in Week 2, the Cardinals simply haven't been the same team that muscled its way through last season's NFC Playoffs and came within a whisker of upsetting the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII. Arizona dropped two of its first three tests before the break, with both of those defeats taking place at home.

In hindsight, Arizona's early losses to San Francisco and Indianapolis don't appear as bad as they initially seemed, considering those two teams are a combined 7-1 at the moment. Still, when a defense is gashed for 505 total yards, as was the case for the Cardinals in their 31-10 beating at the hands of the Colts in Week 3, it's safe to say there's plenty of things to work on during the week off.

A potent aerial attack that produced better than 300 yards per game last season has yet to hit its stride as well through the first three weeks. Nagging injuries to dangerous receivers Anquan Boldin and Steve Breaston have played a part in the Cardinals' offensive struggles, while quarterback Kurt Warner and All-Pro wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald have both admitted that they've got to establish a consistent rhythm.

"If you are going against good football teams and you're giving yourself chances to win and you don't win, you can handle that," Warner recently said. "But when you are losing games because you are doing the same things you've been doing for weeks, not cleaning it up and not fixing the problem, that's really frustrating. Now you're losing games because you're not giving yourself a chance.

After closing out the 2008 campaign with six consecutive 100-yard efforts, including the postseason, Fitzgerald has compiled a rather ordinary 181 yards on 17 catches through Arizona's opening three games.

NEXT UP; The Cardinals and Texans will hold just their second-ever meeting this weekend in Phoenix. The teams squared off in the Lone Star State during Week 15 of the 2005 season, with Houston coming away with a 30-19 win. Prior to losing its first two bouts at University of Phoenix Stadium this season, Arizona had won 11 times in a 13-game span at home.